K.S. Gopal with protesting women
DDS founder as whistleblower returns to ask for accounts
Civil Society News, New Delhi
FOR the longest time, the Deccan Development Society (DDS) has been known for its efforts to empower Dalit women in rural Andhra Pradesh. It has promoted organic farming with the saving of traditional seeds and the cultivation of millets, sorghum in particular, in rain-deficit areas.
P.V. Satheesh, who led DDS till his passing two years ago, came to be called the Millet Man of India. Other recognitions were bestowed on DDS as well. It was copiously funded and succeeded in having its own radio and television outreach.
Recent developments, however, are not flattering. More than 1,000 village women, who were part of the DDS model of rural uplift, have signed a petition asking for accounts of money collected from them over the years. There are other complaints as well. Demonstrations have been held.
Most embarrassing perhaps for DDS has been one of the founders, K.S. Gopal, taking up cudgels on behalf of the women and asking the DDS management to open up its books for scrutiny.
Gopal had moved on from DDS to do other things. He had laid the foundation for DDS way back in 1979 before the organization formally came into being in the early 1980s.
With DDS choosing to remain silent, it is difficult to make a fair evaluation of the charges. But Gopal has been persistent with his enquiries and says the people running DDS must be more transparent and provide answers to specific questions he is raising on behalf of the village women.
Q: You have been raising issues of malfeasance in the functioning of the Deccan Development Society (DDS). What prompted you to do this?
The women of Zaheerabad block in Medak district who have been the beneficiaries of DDS projects approached me. They had several complaints about DDS’ functioning. I am a founder-member of DDS. It was after 30 years, in March 2023, that I went to the Pastapur office of DDS to attend the funeral of P.V. Satheesh, a co-founder who had been running the organization. The poor women who were part of the DDS projects approached me, saying, “Sir, they have orphaned us!” I was moved.
A month after Satheesh’s funeral, I went back and met the women’s groups and multiple issues came to light. Getting the documents has taken a year.
Q: What exactly are the complaints against DDS?
First of all, the women want accounts for money that was collected from them over the years. The women of the backward and arid Zaheerabad taluk were organized into village sanghams or collectives. It was something I started in 1979 and it continued after DDS was formed in 1985.
The women would make a pool of their micro savings from which they could then borrow. They used to be given a passbook with a record of deposits and withdrawals. But somewhere down the line DDS stopped giving the women an account of their money.
By my calculation, the principal plus interest money (on savings) lying with DDS amounts to not less than `3 crore to `4 crore. And it should be given back to the 1,500 women from whom it was collected. It came out of their very meagre savings.
Last year, 1,000 women signed a petition given to the District Collector, saying that they fear their money will be lost forever because they get the sense that DDS is on the verge of being wound up.
Q: So, it is essentially about the micro-savings of the women.
There has also been sale of community land. DDS has sold 103 acres in the past decade. Interestingly, six acres in Krishnapur village were sold for a song to a physician treating Satheesh.
Land was acquired using donor money for the purpose of creating balwadis or creches. The land was jointly in the name of the DDS and two representatives of the village sangham. But balwadi lands have been sold without the knowledge or consent of the women.
Despite multiple representations and visits to the DDS office by the women for the past 15 years, DDS refuses to show the accounts or return their money. As founder and member of its general body (meetings have not been held for 30 years), I wrote to and talked with the DDS managing committee for six months. They refused to provide the villagers with financial data or address their grievances.
The women are illiterate and have no documents or records. Everything is in DDS custody. They refuse to show or share it. It took me one year to gather information and documents from multiple agencies. Even now the information is not complete as DDS alone has it. Whatever I am saying is based on evidence and documents that are authenticated and lying with me. An inquiry will bring out a true and complete picture.
The sanghams received revolving funds from state agencies and donors and kept them in the local banks with operations being overseen and signed by two representatives of the sanghams and one DDS nominee. For one revolving fund for which there is documentary proof, DDS raised over `12 crore between 1998 and 2004. This was DDS’ much-acclaimed sorghum (jowar) alternative public distribution system. It is for this that DDS has received awards such as Millet Man of India for Satheesh and Millet Sisters Network. Donor oversight ended in 2005. And in 2006 DDS transferred `62,68,600 of village revolving funds into fixed deposits without the knowledge of the sanghams.
The villagers found that suddenly all their money had vanished. It took me one year to find the data and get the documents. In 20 years, compound interest on the principal should now exceed `5 crore.
Q: What do you think has gone wrong at DDS?
I left DDS in 1990. My last visit to the project area was in 1993. Until 2000 things seemed well at DDS. But in 1996-97, three key founders and in all six members quit DDS, unhappy but not wanting to wreck things. DDS never held a general body meeting (this information is from the Registrar of Societies) nor submitted obligatory data to the Registrar for 30 years. DDS went into the complete control of Satheesh.
DDS built a big profile and attracted huge resources. It was a media savvy organization with its own radio and TV (infrastructure). It was a heady mix of Dalit women, traditional seeds, crop biodiversity and food sovereignty. It drew important people to its managing committee which was, of course, nominated.
I met a DDS board member on a train some 15 years ago and she told me that she was forced to quit for questioning how DDS money was being spent on the healthcare of its secretary. With its success, the ecosystem in DDS became lacking as the organization has no countervailing power. A field investigation report by the Human Rights Forum in December 2023 on what the women have to say was buried.
Comments
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Aiman - April 15, 2025, 11:39 p.m.
Deeply disheartening to witness allegations of financial fraud emerging from an organisation dedicated to serving the most marginalised community. The erosion of transparency and accountability in such "esteemed" institutions seems to be an increasingly troubling pattern these days. Grateful to Gopal for having the courage to speak up, hoping that integrity, truth, and justice prevail.
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DDS Team - April 14, 2025, 7:03 p.m.
The Deccan Development Society (DDS) strongly objects to the unsubstantiated allegations being made by a former member, K.S. Gopal, who left the organization in 1993 to build his own career and stayed away from DDS since then. It was the passing away of the director of DDS, P.V. Satheesh, which he is using now as an opportunity to discredit him and the organization. We are not aware of his motivations for his continued attacks on DDS except that the organization has grown and flourished after Gopal’s exit. DDS is a well-structured and accountable organization, consistently meeting its obligations, including furnishing of annual accounts as required by law. These accounts are publicly available on our official website, www.ddsindia.org. K.S. Gopal resurfaced in the community only after the passing of Satheesh and has since engaged in repeated media and field-based campaigns against DDS. His second legal challenge against DDS was recently dismissed by a Telangana High Court division bench, further reinforcing the baseless nature of his claims. He lost the battle twice. Out of six founders, one left in 1997 and lives in another town. The second person resigned in 2001. Both left for personal reasons. Two founder-members have passed away and one continues. Gopal claims Board members left because they were unhappy, this is untrue. Gopal left the organization 32 years ago without looking back and has now surfaced to stake a claim to the organization. He doesn’t know what activities were carried out by the society in the last 30 years and is making wild allegations about its functioning. DDS has been actively implementing its activities in the six mandals of Zaheerabad region, promoting organic farming as well as millet cultivation by women farmers, and providing training to men and women farmers in entire Sangareddy district. DDS continues its activities which are well recognized by the community and government agencies. We would like to clarify the following allegations made by Gopal. Savings: It may be noted that DDS is not an MFI, giving loans at high interest rates. It is supporting women farmers to grow organic food. DDS has publicly announced that members may approach the organization to settle their accounts and collect their deposits, if they want to, upon verification through passbooks and available statements. Since we have been working in the villages for almost three decades, no member is asking for the returning of savings. They want to continue working with the organization. Majority of members have more loans from the organization than savings. Gopal is lying to the public. Balwadi lands: DDS operated ‘Balwadis’ between 1994 and 2009 when the government’s Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) centres did not exist or were non-functional in the DDS villages. In line with our thinking, small plots of two to five acres were purchased by DDS where available in different villages where Balwadis were run. DDS is the legal holder of these lands. The only exception is two villages, where Sangham members contributed a 25 percent share. One village received their share of land in 2016 and the second village land is under acquisition by the government. When land sales took place, these were advertised in the newspapers and due process was followed. There was no secrecy involved. Alternative Public Distribution System: This is in reference to the Alternative Public Distribution System DDS operated to grow jowar. The program was originally supported by the Ministry of Rural Development in 1995. Fixed deposits were created to operate the Alternative Public Distribution System in the villages. Each fixed deposit has two Sangham members and one DDS representative as authorized signatories. The program’s revolving funds in the bank meant to grow organic millets can be retrieved collectively and used for the same purpose. The funds are not meant for individual distribution. Gopal is alleging that `12 crore is accumulated with the organization which is a lie. DDS has clearly declared that villages that wish to use the money from their fixed deposits can form a Sangham to utilize the money for the purpose of food security and livelihoods as was originally intended. These funds were intended to be a revolving fund for the village and can be used as such. With regard to the HRF (Human Rights Forum) publication, they clearly state that they have not verified any claims made. Gopal has used the ex-staff of DDS to raise complaints before the State Women’s Commission. DDS has submitted a formal response, through the women farmers/Sangham members. We strongly object to a one-sided publication that has disseminated unverified claims without affording DDS an opportunity to respond or present our position. We request you to immediately print our rejoinder in full. On behalf of the Deccan Development Society Board: Prof. B.P. Sanjay, Chairperson; Prof. Shantha Sinha, Treasurer; Dr R. Akhileshwari, Secretary; Prof. Vinod Pavarala, Member; Dr V. Rukmini Rao, Vice Chair; Mrs H. Surya Kala, Farmer Member; Dr E. Revathi, Member; Dr G.V. Ramanjaneyulu, Member; Ms V. Veda Kumari, Member
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K S Gopal - April 13, 2025, 3:47 p.m.
DDS does not rebut a single charge. My response to what they wrote. a) the monies I list are in DDS custody. They are independent accounts with villagers as co-signatories and will not figure in “transparent balance sheets posted on website” or audited. b) Upon not getting information from DDS, despite multiple requests and finding DDS has not filed its annual statutory information to Registrar of Society (licensing authority) for 30 years, my prayer in the writ to High Court was to direct the Registrar of Societies to seek statutory information from DDS and discharge their duty. c) Further, the Court directed me to pursue matter in a civil court and this failure of regulatory agencies will be challenged. d) DDS is a society with members of general body who must statutorily meet at least once a year to deliver multiple functions - elect the managing committee, scrutinize/pass the accounts, amend bye-laws as needed and appoint statutory auditor. I am a founder life member of DDS general body. According to the Registrar, DDS general body meeting is not conducted for 30 years! The management committee nominates itself. f) DDS website lists founders, members of the managing committee, staff but omits to list members of its general body. g) This statement is signed by DDS team, not management committee or office bearer as his/her/their legitimacy is in question. h) The State Human Rights Forum recommended a three-member independent women group to enquire was rejected by DDS management to safeguard skeletons in its closet. As in my statement, with no countervailing checks and balances provided in DDS bye-laws and of charitable societies Act, has led to unchecked cheating, fraud on people, fear among staff and mis-appropriation and corruption at DDS. K S Gopal, Founder Member, Deccan Development Society, Hyderabad
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Anjaneyulu - March 29, 2025, 10:57 a.m.
Very sad to know the happenings at DDS, in sucha reputed organization. Lack of financial transparency and lack of participation of stake holders in decision making , leads to chaos in any organisation